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Homelessness

2 men sleeping in dumpsters meet gruesome deaths

Tallahassee Democrat

 

Anthony DeWayne Todd of Tallahassee, a month away from his 44th birthday, probably had a seizure while sleeping in a dumpster and didn't revive when the trash truck came to empty it.

TALLAHASSEE — Two men who likely never met died the same bone-crushing way, according to recently released investigative reports: They fell asleep in dumpsters that city garbage trucks emptied and were killed in the maw of the trash compactor.

The bodies of William J. "Jay" Norris and Anthony D. Todd were found two months apart at the Leon County waste transfer station.

One was a longtime homeless resident of Tallahassee. The other was a more recent arrival.

As coincidental as those bizarre circumstances appear, the Leon County Sheriff’s Office said no foul play was involved. The two deaths were purely accidental and seemingly avoidable.

Their deaths raise questions about the safety of trash bins and whether enough precautions are in place to prevent people from getting trapped in trucks' compactors.

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“It’s a dilemma,” said Pastor Glenn Burns of Good Samaritan Network of Tallahassee. He tries to let folks know about a place to get a blanket, a hot meal and a safe place to sleep.

But some just won’t spend a night in a shelter. Instead, they seek the woods and other alternatives to a roof and four walls.

Burns participated in a recent National Homeless Persons' Memorial Day for the 28 people in this area who died while homeless. Anthony Todd’s name was on that list.

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“Our list was the longest it’s ever been this year,” Burns said.

They didn’t all die in dumpsters. Many died from illnesses related to chronic drug and alcohol abuse. Others had mental illnesses or were combat veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder.

“It’s a never-ending battle,” Burns said. “Sometimes it takes years for them to develop trust with you to take next step.”

Anthony Todd

Perry Kalip was working a bulldozer to load trash onto semi-trucks at the waste transfer station one August day when he saw legs sticking out of a trash pile.

At first, he thought it was a mannequin. But then Kalip touched the legs with his finger.

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Workers cleared the debris and uncovered the body of a man clothed in a dark gray shirt, dark shorts, dark socks and a Sketcher shoe on one foot. The left leg was badly disfigured, like from a serious injury.

A tattoo on his upper right arm read “Todd.” A search of the victim’s pockets unearthed a piece of paper from “Star Metro” and a credit/debit card with the name of Anthony Todd.

The body had prominent scars that helped further identify him.

He was a month away from turning 44. He had been homeless for years.

He suffered from seizures. He drank heavily.

Investigators theorized that Todd may have climbed into a dumpster one rainy night to stay dry, had a seizure, fell into a deep sleep, and did not awaken when the garbage truck came to empty the contents of the dumpster.

After interviewing several employees at the City of Tallahassee Renaissance Center, they learned that he frequently hung out at a walled-in dumpster in the back of the parking lot near a place where customers make drive-through utility payments.

Several employees said Todd frequently slept in the dumpster.

“It was raining the night before and morning of the dumpster pickup, so it is likely that Todd was inside the dumpster at the time,” investigators reported. The victim likely was inside the dumpster despite signs warning people to stay out because of a crushing hazard.

Investigators found several personal effects, clothing, a lighter, cigarette packs, a bag of lottery tickets, and mail addressed to Anthony Todd. 

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They tracked down his sister Wanda Ann Todd. When they told her about her brother’s death, she was upset but calmed down enough to ask what had happened.

They gave her some basic details.

Anthony Todd was prone to recurring seizures since birth and was on medication, she told them. She bought his seizure medicine for him. But he still had seizures and would sometimes pass out and sleep for hours afterward.

Anthony Todd’s mother didn't know he was dead. Wanda Todd said the woman was in a nursing home and she would rather tell her the news.

William Norris

Virgil Norris hadn’t seen or talked to his son in 15 years, ever since his child moved to Rhode Island with his wife and kids.

Suddenly over the summer, William Norris, showed up at his father's suburban St. Petersburg, Fla., home saying he wanted to “re-forge his relationship and get his life back in order,” according to a Leon County Sheriff’s Office investigative report.

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The elder Norris bought his son a car, a silver 2005 BMW. The long lost son stayed with his dad in Pinellas Park, Fla., about a week and then took off.

Next time Virgil Norris heard from his son was when he got a DUI in August in Gadsden County, Fla., just west of Tallahassee. Gadsden County sheriff’s deputies found the younger Norris and the car in a ditch in Havana, Fla.

They called Florida Highway Patrol to investigate. William Norris told the trooper he was backing up and ran into the ditch.

He stumbled, was unsteady on his feet, slurred his words, and smelled strongly of alcohol.

“His eyes were glassy and bloodshot,” the trooper said.

William Norris refused to take part in field sobriety exercises and was placed under arrest. He had no driver’s license on him and was identified from his passport.

He was charged with having an open container of alcohol, improper backing, failure to carry personal injury protection, driving with a suspended or revoked license and not showing his license. All charges were dismissed Aug. 12 as part of a plea deal made in his absence.

Since Virgil Norris had paid for the car, he traveled to Gadsden County to bring it back to his home.

But the elder Norris had no idea what happened to his son after the 45-year-old was released from Gadsden County Jail. Two months later, William Norris’ body was found at the waste transfer station.

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Myron Henry, a heavy-equipment operator at the transfer station, was operating a front-end loader moving trash around when he saw a body visible from the torso up among the trash. Investigating deputies saw the body’s right arm was broken above the elbow and had “significant trauma to the head.”

The body was clothed in a blue T-shirt, tan and gray checked shorts and gray tennis shoes.

On his body and clothing, they found his driver’s license, a black Samsung Android smartphone, its case, Publix gift cards, assorted credit cards, rewards cards, health insurance cards, headphones, a broken disposable razor, Merrell shoes, a beaded necklace and black bracelet.

The body was taken to the medical examiner for an autopsy. Blood and tissue samples were taken to run toxicology tests.

Virgil Norris wasn’t sure why his son was in Tallahassee, telling investigators he didn’t know if his son knew anyone in the state capital.

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“It should be noted that Virgil Norris did not appear to be surprised” about how his son died, investigators wrote. 

They also reached out to William Norris’ first wife, Sandy, whom he’d met and married in college while both attended the University of Florida. She said they had been estranged about 12 years.

“Sandy said that William had a high-paying job and simply woke up one day deciding to be an alcoholic,” the report said.

She had lost track of his whereabouts but also wasn’t surprised about the circumstances of his death, investigators said.

William Norris’ second ex-wife, Melissa Comeau, told investigators he was a deadbeat dad and spouse abuser who was addicted to drugs and alcohol. She said they divorced in January 2014, and he lost his parental rights in October 2015 because of his “horrible alcohol and drug problem.”

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Comeau and William Norris had married after he divorced his first wife in June 2005. William Norris was born in Pinellas County but married his first wife, had two children and moved to Barrington, R.I, before they divorced.

He and Comeau also have two children together. She said he hadn’t seen their daughters in a year and was more than $15,000 behind on child support.

Crushed to death

The medical examiner in Anthony Todd’s case noted broken ribs and hemorrhaging in the eyes. Based on her observations, she said the cause of death was likely asphyxiation caused from compression of the chest.

"The observed injuries are consistent with being crushed,” not being the victim of a violent crime, according to the autopsy report.

William Norris died from multiple blunt traumatic injuries.

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“Extensive trauma was obvious and consistent with the body being compressed by a trash compactor,” one deputy observed.

The medical examiner documented many crush injuries to the face, skull and jaw, neck and rib fractures.

The toxicology report found his blood-alcohol level at 0.249.

In both cases, investigators surmised that both men took refuge in a dumpster, fell asleep and went unnoticed when they were lifted into the city garbage trucks that delivered them to their gruesome deaths.

Follow Jeffrey Schweers on Twitter: @jeffschweers

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